Nature Notes: Robins

Because of the information we posted about Operation Christmas Child last month, I hated to put anything above it. Now that the 2010 National Collection Week is over, it’s time to share something new. (Note: a handful of drop-off locations are open for another month.)

Did you know… not all robins head south for the winter?

According to BirdWatcher’sDigest.com (#8), American robins “migrate only as far south as they need to or are forced by bad weather or food shortages.” Information from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology points out that robin migrations in the fall “are often influenced by the availability of fruit,” yet in the spring “they move in response to the availability of soil invertebrates, such as earthworms.”

In other words, the number of American robins you see in the spring, winter and fall depends upon where you live and the severity of the conditions in your area. While some of them stay through the winter in many parts of North American, you may not notice robins again until spring, when they emerge from their berry-foraging habitats in order search for their usual warm-weather fare.

While not a “species of concern,” American robins have certainly been a species of interest in our house this year, as evidenced by this painting and the drawings below it.